RAF Engaged in 10-Day Attack on ISIS in Iraq

The Royal Air Force (RAF) engaged in the biggest air raids against ISIS in two years, using bombs and missiles in a 10-day operation to clear their stronghold in Iraq, the Ministry of Defence said on Thursday.

RAF attacked up to 100 cave hideouts in Iraq, which is likely to have caused dozens of casualties.

UK forces worked in conjunction with Iraqi Security Forces ground troops to oust ISIS from the Makhmur mountain region of Iraq, southwest of Erbil.

Three Typhoon FGR4s, Storm Shadow missiles and Paveway IV bombs were used in the attack, which surveillance later confirmed had been a great success.

The area was checked beforehand to make sure that no civilian would be put at risk, the MoD affirmed in a statement.

"The British Armed Forces, alongside our Iraqi and coalition partners, continue to root out Daesh (IS) terrorists from where they hide,” Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said. "The UK is committed to defeating Daesh.”

Moreover, Wallace asserted that the operation “will prevent the terrorist group and its toxic ideology from regaining a foothold in Iraq and reduce its capability to coordinate attacks around the world."

In a separate mission last Sunday, an RAF Reaper armed with Hellfire missiles accomplished a successful strike on a small IS camp in northern Syria 50 miles west of Al Hasakah.

The MoD noted that while IS has been "territorially defeated", about 100,000 IS terrorists were still at large in Syria and Iraq.

"The UK, together with 81 partner nations of the Global Coalition, therefore remains committed to working with Iraq to not only defeat Daesh but to also enhance security in the region," the MoD added.